Safety belt with drawable safety band



2 Sheets-Sheet l Bnventor CLARENCE W. ROSE E wHlTEHEAD a voel. l PER MMM momma Sept. 8, 1953 c. w. ROSE SAFETY BELT WITH DRAWABLE SAFETY BANDFiled Aug 29, 1951 Sept. 8, 1953 c. w. ROSE SAFETY BELT WITH DRAWABLESAFETY BAND 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Y Filed Aug. 29, 1951 CLARENCE W. ROSEWHITEHEAD a voGL Cttornegs Patented Sept. 8, 1953 UNITED STATES PATENTOFFICE SAFETY BELT WITH DRAWABLE SAFETY BAND Clarence W. Rose, Denver,Colo. Application August 29, 1951, Serial No. 244,209

8 Claims. l

'I'his invention relates to safety belts and similar appliances whichare designed and adapted to protect a wearer from injury, by checking afall, and has as an object to provide a new and improved safety beltconstruction having therein an arrangement of elements which assures apositive and dependable operation of the safety belt.

Other objects of my invention are to provide in a 'safety belt, having anew and improved doubleband construction, including a non-drawable andsubstantially non-stretchable waist band circumscribed by a drawable,energy-absorbing safety band, (a) an arrangement of the bands in suchcombination that the effect upon the wearer, under normal conditions',is that of only a single waist band; (b) new and improved means forconnecting the bands together and for interengaging the belt to a lifeline in a manner which will provide for proper drawing of all portionsof the safety band under abnormal conditions, such as a fall of thewearer, and which will insure maintenance of engagement of the waistband with the safety band throughout, and after completion of, thedrawing of the safety band and will permit the waist band to act asapadding or softening element during the drawing of the safety band; (c)new and improved means for inter-engaging the belt to a life line in amanner which connects the safety band and the waist band under normaluse, but which permits a partial separation of the safety band, with itslife line connection, at that point of connection, from the waist bandunder abnormal conditions as upon a fall of the wearer; (d) new andimproved means for inter-engaging the safety band to the substantiallynon-stretchable waist band and to a substantially non-stretchable lifeline whereby to provide a, drawable element between the waist band andthe life line; (e) means for insuring maintenance of connection of thesafety band and the waist band after partial separation thereof; and (f)a belt of simple compact structure, and adaptable for use withindividuals having various waist girths.

With these and other objects in view, all of which more fullyhereinafter appear, my invention comprises certain new and novelconstructions, combinations and arrangements of parts and elements, ashereinafter described, as defined in the appended claims and asillustrated, in preferred embodiment, in the accompanying drawing inwhich:

Figure 1 is a plan Vview of -a safety belt constructed in accordance"with the present invention, including a .life .line connection,

-the construction as viewed from the indicated line 2 2 at Fig. 1.

Figure 3 is a section, on a further enlarged scale, as viewed from theindicated line 3 3 at Fig. 2.

Figure 4 is a section as taken on the indicated line 4 4 at Fig. 3.

Figure 5 is a view similar to Fig. 1 but on a reduced scale andillustrating the relation of the belt elements with the safety bandpartially drawn as in case of the wearers fall.

Figure 6 is a plan view similar to Fig. 1 but illustrating a modifiedconstruction of connector elements associated therewith.

Figure '7 is a fragmentary View, in elevation, on an enlarged scale, astaken from the indicated line 1 1 at Fig. 6.

Figure 8 is a section as taken on the indicated line 8 8 at Fig. 7.

Figure 9 is a section, on a further enlarged scale, as taken on theindicated line 9 9 at Fig. '7.

Figure 10 is a fragmentary detail of said modied construction showing aposition of the connective elements assumed upon the falling of thewearer and responsive to the force exerted by such fall.

Figure 11 is a fragmentary view illustrating an alternative linkingarrangement of the safety band and connector shown at the centralportion of Fig. 8.

The construction of safety belts and life lines has recentlyincorporated drawable materials such, for example, as undrawn nylon,generally in the life line or as an appurtenance to the belt, whichprovide a segment of the element, between the safety belt and the lifeline anchor, having the property of being drawable into a lengthsubstantially greater than its normal undrawn length and adapted,thereby, to absorb the energy of the fall and to bring the wearer to anunjarring stop. However, the use of life lines which are of materials,such as substantially non-stretchable manila rope, is still widespread,and it is a purpose of this invention to provide a new and improvedsafety belt which may be used in conjunction with a substantiallynonstretchable life line by incorporating into the belt a band ofdrawable material in addition to the conventional waist band.

The width and thickness of the safety band are the elements whichdetermine the amount of pull which can be exerted thereon withoutresulting in drawing. Until a certain momentum has been accumulated by afalling man he can b e stopped by a substantially unyielding belt, lifeline and anchorage, without injury. It is desirable to provide a safetyband which will stop the wearers fall without drawing if the fullmomentum of the falling wearer is exerted on the safety band before thatmomentum has exceeded the said safety limit for a sudden stop and beforethe undrawn limit of the strength of the safety band is reached. It hasbeen ascertained that the wearer of a belt can withstand a belt pull ofabout two thousand pounds without substantial injury, but it ispreferable touse a safety band of such width and thickness that it willbegin to draw responsive to a pull of around fifteen hundred pounds inorder to come safely within the point at which injury is likely tooccur.

The length to which a safety band can be drawn, as compared to itsundrawn length, can be predetermined and that quality of undrawnV nylonis selected for the safety band which will draw to such length as toallow the desired time or distance, between the start and the limit ofthe drawing, to properly decelerate the fall of the wearer and ease himto a safe stop. This can be determined according to the weight of thewearer and the conditions under which he is working, including therigidity or yieldability of the life line and the anchorage.

The drawing of such safety band will retard the movement of the fallingwearer and ease him. to a safe stop without the abrupt shock which wouldoccur were the safety band constructed of material not having suchdrawable characteristics.

The two bands are, normally, of aproximately the same length and eachend of the safety band is permanently secured to an end of the waistband by suitable means, as hereinafter described, thus forming a belt oftwo layers. The interconnecting of the bands at one of their ends ispreferably accomplished by threading them through a buckle 25, laterdescribed, and then overlapping said ends, forming a loop 23, andsecuring the ends of the bands to each other and to the body of thetwo-layer belt by suitable stitching 24 or other securing means, thussecuring such buckle in one end of the two-layer belt. The buckle 25 maybe of any conventional construction which is adapted to engage the endof a belt by a frictional engagement which tightens as the force exertedthereon increases, the illustrated construction being a two-elementinterlockable buckle.

To avoid wear of the safety band portion at the inner face of the loop23, a shield 26, of any suitable material, is wrapped around that por-Vtion of the buckle which is within the loop. The opposite end of thesafety belt, forming the tongue, includes the waist band 2l and thevsafety band 22 laid side by side with the ends preferably joined withina tip cover 2 1 and held by stitching 28, or other suitable means. It isto be noted that the length of the safety band will be somewhat greaterthan the length of the waist band because of its being at the outercircumference of the belt, normally formed as a circular loop. However,because of the reverse folds of the ends of the belt in the buckle, thisexcess length need not be substantial, it being desirable to have thetwo bands normally t snugly together.

As clearly illustrated at Fig. 1, the belt is connected to a wearer bysimply threading the tongue through the buckle 25 whereupon it may beadjusted to the desired tightness around the wearer. The wearer may beeither a small narrow-waisted man or a heavy large-waisted man, the samebelt being adjustable to either man equally well. In either case, thelength of drawable safety band portion will be appropriate, the lighternarrow-waisted man not reduiring as much band drawing to check his fallas will the heavier man.

In use, this belt is connected, as later described, to a life line 29,being preferably an ordinary rope which is substantially non-stretchableand which, if connected directly to the waist band, would stop the fallof a wearer with a sudden shock. Such a life line is engaged to suitableanchorage in the structure being Worked upon by the wearer. The lifeline is also provided with a connector hook 30 for attachment to thesafety belt by suitable means, here illustrated as a D-ring 3l, carriedby the belt.

The base of the D-ring 3l is within the safety band 22 but is outsidethe waist band 2l, and the bands are slightly separated by thev D-ringconnection which is so positioned as to be approximately diametric ofthe buckle 25 when the belt is normally adjusted to a man of averagewaist girth and is thereby normally positioned behind the wearer and outof his way. As the waist girth of the wearer increases above average,the length of that portion of the belt between the tongue-buckleconnection and the D-ring connection will increase and when worn by aman of less than average waist girth said portion of the belt will bedecreased. Such variation will, of course, vary the position of theD-ring connection, relative to the buckle, one way or the other from thediametric. Such variation in the relative lengths of the safety band onthe two sides of the belt will somewhat vary the relative drawing of thetwo portions of the belt during the falling but will not lessen itseffectiveness in accomplishing the desired object of easing the wearerto a safe stop in case of a fall.

The D-ring 3| is held in position, and the bands 2l and 22 areinterconnected, by connecter 32 which may be formed as a rectangularpiece of leather or other suitable material of sufficient width toprovide transverse slits 33 therein through which to pass the bands 2land 22. The pairs of slits 33 divide the connecter into end straps 34,intermediate strips 33 and central body 36.

The waist band and the safety band are both threaded through both outerslits 33 and overlie end Straps 34. That portion of the waist bandbetween the end straps 34 lies within the balance of the Gonnecter 32While the corresponding portion of the safety band is threaded throughthe inner slits 33 and thus lies outwardh7 of the central body 36whereby the central body 36 lies between the two bands With the straps34 thus inter-engaging the waist band 2l with the safety band 22.Transverse stitching 31, through the intermediate straps 35 and band 22,joins the safety band to the connecter 32 thereby preventing movement ofconnecter 32 longtiudinally of the belt.

D-ring 3l is carried near the center of the body 36 by a suitable clip38 attached to body 36, as by rivets 39, said clip holding a sleeve 40which enclose the base of D-ring. A cover 4l, of leather or othersuitable material is mounted over i the safety band between theintermediate straps 34 and is likewise held in ing 31.

It follows that upon a fall of a-wearer of the belt, a strain upon thesafety band, as by the life line 29 holding the D-ring 3|, in oppositionto the pull of the falling wearer, will cause the end straps 34 to tearapart and permit the safety.

band 22 to separate from the' Waist band 2| except where interconnectedat and by the buckle. The first phase of the drawing of the safety bandwill necessarily be while the waist band is inside the safety band, andsince the drawing of the safety band will occur on each side of theD-rng and extend therefrom to the buckle 25, there can be no strain uponthe waist band either by the drawing or by the weightof the wearer, andthe waist band will merely act as a shield or cushion between the safetyband and the wearer preventing chang of the wearer by the safety band asit draws. Should the wearer swing out of the loop formed by the safetyband as it is being drawn, as illustrated at Fig. 5, he is neverthelessfully protected for the waist band is still position by' the stitch;`

secured to the safety band by engagement at buckle and is sufficientlystrong to hold him in engagement with and supported by the safety band.

The belt 20', shown at Figs. 6 through 10, is a modification of thesafety belt construction hereinbefore described, and is especiallyadapted for use under various operating conditions where two D-ringconnections are desirable as, for one of many examples, where a man isworking on a steep incline such as a roof or side hill. In such case thelife line 29 is engaged to a post or other anchorage, usually above thepoint where the belt wearer is working, and each of its ends is providedwith a connector hook 30 for engagement, respectively, with D-rings 31aand 3| b. This belt differs from the hereinbefore described constructiononly by the D-ring arrangement and the interconnection of the bandsadjacent the D-rings. The belt 20' comprises a waist band 2|circumscribed by a safety band 22, a buckle 25 at one end, in an endloop 23, and a tongue interconnection 21, all as in the Figs. 1-5embodiment.

To provide the modified D-ring arrangement, a rectangular link 42 isthreaded upon the safety band and connected thereto at a pointapproximately diametric of the buckle 25 and tongue ends, by a shield43, which may be of cloth, sewn around the inner reach of the link andto the safety band by stitching 44 at each side of the link. A connecter45, formed by several overlaid wraps of suitable material, such asbelting, is threaded through the link 42 and the D-rings Sla and 3Ib,forming a longitudinal member having a loop 46 at each end, the layersof which are secured together by stitching 41 adjacent the loops, thebases of the D-rings being within the loops 46 and the link 42 being inthe central portion of the connecter 45, all as clearly illustrate atFigs. 6, 7 and 8.

To prevent wear of the strap material forming the loops 46, I providewithin each loop 46 a sleeve 48, preferably of metal and preferablywithin a cloth sleeve 49, the base of the D-rings being seated withinthe sleeves 48.

The connecter 45 is held flatly against the belt 20' by strips 50, ofleather or other suitable material, which are wrapped tightly about theconnecter 45 and the belt 20 at each end'of the connecter adjacent theloops 46 and held in wrapped position as by rivets 5I.

It follows that upon a fall of a wearer of the belt, when, for example,only one D-ring, as Sla,

is connected to an anchored life line, a strain upon the safety band, asby the life line `29l holding the D-ring 31a in opposition to the pullof the falling wearer, will cause the strip 50,

At Fig. 11 is illustrated an alternative ar-y rangement of the connecterand the link which is'there designated as 42a. The link in thisembodiment is made slightly wider than link 42, and all layers ofconnecter 45 are, in this embodiment, enclosed within the link. As inthe previously described embodiment, in case of a fall of the wearer,the link will slide toward an end of the connector, will break the strip50 which it contacts, and then be stopped by the D-ring toward which itis sliding.

I have illustrated in the drawing and herein described various detailsof construction and operation but alternatives and equivalents as wellas other uses of the invention will occur to those skilled in the artand I desire my protection not limited to the detailed illustration anddescription herein but only by the proper scope of the appended claims.

I claim:

1. A safety belt including, in combination, a waist band ofsubstantially non-stretchable material, a safety band of undrawndrawable material, of a character capable of being drawn to a permanentlength at least double its normal undrawn length, normally snuglyencircling the waist band substantially throughout its bodyencirclinglength and forming a two-layer belt, means for securing said belt aroundthe body of a wearer, means for securing the end portions of the safetyband to the end portions of the waist band when the belt is securedaround the wearers body, the safety band being otherwise separable fromthe waist band responsive to abnormal stress, and a member engaging thesafety band, normally substantially spaced along said belt from saidwaist-band-securing means, and adapted to interengage the safety bandwith an anchored life-line.

2. A safety belt as defined in claim 1 and including a connectornormally interconnecting the two bands at a point substantially spacedalong the belt from the waist-band-securing means but adapted todisconnect said two bands at said point responsive to abnormal stress.

3. A safety belt as defined in claim 2 wherein said connector ispositioned on said belt substantially diametric of thewaist-band-securing means.

4. A safety belt as defined in claim 2 wherein said connector releasablyinterconnects said two bands at two points spaced apart and said memberengages the safety band between said interconnecting points, saidconnector being adapted to break said interconnection responsive toabnormal stress.

5. A belt as dened in claim 1, wherein said member is a D-ring throughwhich the safety band is threaded.

6. A safety belt as dened in claim 1 wherein said member includesA apair of D-rngs, a substantially non-stretchable element having each ofitsl ends vsecured respectively to one of said D-rings and a linkbetween said D-rings securely engaging said member with the safety band.

7. A safety belt as dened in claim 6 including releasable connectormeans normally holding said element and D-rings adjacent the waist bandbut adapted to disconnect and thereby release said element from itsposition adjacent the waist band responsive to abnormal stress.

8, A safety belt including, in combination, a Waist band ofsubstantially non-stretchable material, a safety band of undrawndrawable material, of a character capable of being drawn to a permanentlength at least double its normal undrawn length, normally snuglyencircling the Waist band and forming a two-layer belt, means securingmeans, and a. member engaging the` safety band, normally substantiallyspaced along: said belt from saidV waist-band-securing means, andadapted to interengage the safety band withA an anchored life-line.

CLARENCE W. ROSE.

References 4Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTSNumber Name Date 1,636,459 Chappel July 19, 1927 1,827,357 Gavitt Oct.13, 1931 2,581,772

Rose Jan. 8, 19521

